“When small men begin to cast big shadows, it means that the sun is about to set.” Lin YutangSometimes the smallest men cast the largest shadows. Diego Maradona was a mere 5’5” yet his shadow overwhelmed Lionel Messi for most of Messi’s life. Messi grew to be beloved in Argentina, but Maradona had ascended one level higher, a world cup champion level higher. It was the magic with the ball, his ability to capture their hearts, and the ability to deliver a World Cup championship going through England so soon after the Argentine defeat in the Falklands War. He was a walking, talking, singing, and dancing deity to the nation and that allowed them to overlook his personal issues, his drug problems, and the mess he made of his life. Messi wasn’t loud, in fact he was quiet, he didn’t grow up in the slums as Maradona did, his father and mother worked and he played from a young age and eventually left for Barcelona at 13. Messi would go on to win everything in Europe club football: more titles, player of the year awards, and top scoring awards than anyone. But despite the fervent prayers of the nation, as the sun began to set on Messi’s Argentina career, it seemed that the wee little flawed man from the 1980s would cast a longer shadow than the wee little moral man from this century and do so for eternity. Messi broke Maradona’s records, his club record far surpassed him, yet there was always 1986. Only a World Cup victory would equal Maradona among some soccer critics and it would take a World Cup for this new little genius to occupy a place in Argentine hearts as large as Diego.
I have been wanting to write this story for some time now, but I wasn’t sure how the story would end so I kept putting it off and putting it off as Argentina got closer and closer to the World Cup Final. Then there was so much writing about Messi that I didn’t think it was appropriate. Last week would have been logical, but we practice what we preach here at the C Thomas Printer Cooperative. Now we hype the little man up before he begins his career in the United States in 3 weeks. You must give thanks before you indulge, you must save before you spend, and you must suffer before you can succeed, and boy has Messi suffered playing for Argentina. As a young player, he first played in a major final in 2007, a Copa America (an every 4 year South American Championship), alongside his captain Juan Roman Riquelme, more on him later. Despite being favored, the club lost to a short-handed Brazil team 3-0 where Messi, due to his youth, escaped most of the venom of the Argentine press.
The deity Diego Maradona then took over as manager of Argentina for the next couple years and played Messi out of position and the club performed poorly, barely qualifying for the 2010 World Cup. In addition, due to being a Spanish citizen, Messi could have played for the Spanish national team, a team that won the 2010 World Cup. When presented with the choice, Messi never wavered. He would only wear pale blue and white.
The next year was a quarterfinal exit at the 2011 Copa America played in Argentina where he was booed by his own fans for the first time. He was considered not Argentine enough and dwarfed in popularity to Carlos Tevez who was adored by locals as the next Maradona. Keep in mind, that at this point Messi is the best player in the world, Barcelona, his club team, had won an unprecedented sextuple which is winning every single honor a club team can achieve, and he had won the Ballon’Dor, the prize for the world’s best player.
After another manager change, Messi began to score more goals during World cup qualifying in 2012, and despite playing in Europe professionally, he began to gain the support and cheers of his home country and respect from his teammates. Messi became a captain, but largely led by example and let Javier Mascherano do most of the communication. Messi, despite being rumored, but never confirmed to be injured, led his 2014 Argentina team to the finals of the 2014 World Cup where they lost 1-0 to Germany in extra time. Messi would get the Golden Ball as the player of the tournament, but it was little solace to the now 4-time Ballon D’or winner.
Heartbreak followed again in 2015 at the Copa America in Chile. Messi, now the genuine and more assertive leader of the squad and world’s best goal scorer, expertly helped set up his teammates and served as a creator all the way to the finals. Unfortunately they lost in extra time penalties to Chile after a 0-0 draw in regulation. The press and the Argentine fans were biting in their criticism of him and saying he shouldn’t be compared to the deity and even the deity himself saying “he is no leader.”
It was in 2016, that we realized how big a burden Messi carried at Argentina considering the state of their national soccer federation. The Maradona hiring had been a disaster and wasted Messi’s talents for years and then in recent years the federation was basically bankrupt. It was leaked that the national team staff and security hadn’t been paid for months and eventually the Argentine security team came to Messi as the captain saying they hadn’t been paid for months and could he help? This story wasn’t to be reported but was relayed to Argentine Journalist Juan Pablo Varsky who published it, so who knows how much weight Messi was really carrying on the national team. Messi paid the security out of his own pocket.
Messi was given a reprieve as there was a new international tournament in 2016, the Copa America Centenario which combined South and North American soccer associations to play for a title as a special series. Messi brilliantly captained Argentina into the final again where they would tie 0-0 again to Chile and go to penalties. Messi would miss his penalty chance and Chile would prevail sending Argentina home losers for their 3rd straight major international tournament. Distraught and emotionally spent, Messi retired from the Argentina national team.
It was at this time that the outpouring of love for Messi began in Argentina. Statues were unveiled, he was greeted with cheers and support, 50,000 people marched in Buenos Aires to show their affection for their departed captain. With a cooler head and lower emotions Messi, reversed his decision to retire and joined the team for their 2018 World Cup qualifiers and scored the only goal in a 1-0 defeat of Uruguay in his first game back.
Messi’s Barcelona team had cruised to 4 champions leagues early in his career, but it was now that a genuine rival appeared. Christiano Ronaldo and his Real Madrid team, although not as successful in the Spanish league as Barcelona, began to win the champions league. Ronaldo, who was paired with Sergio Ramos, Marcelo, Luka Modric and Karim Benzema, began to win Ballon D’ors has Messi’s team lost all time greats like Xavi, Iniesta, and Neymar. Barcelona suffered from too much reliance on Messi, Messidependicia. Messi got tougher to compete with the team in Spain’s capital. When Marcelo cheap-shotted Messi in the mouth in Real Madrid’s Bernabeu Stadium during a Classico and he was writhing on the ground, blood pouring out of his mouth, Messi grew tougher. He got up and later scored two goals including the game winner as time expired and ran over to the sidelines and held up the back of his jersey to the opposing crowd. The quiet kid from Rosario was now channeling his inner Maradona in the show of competitiveness. When the brooding Sergio Ramos fouled his teammate too roughly, it was Messi that would run over and stomp the muscular Ramos into a writhing ball as Messi stood over him barking at the renowned defender that it was he that would rule the pitch.
So in 2017, the newly fanged version of Messi was suspended for insulting an official and suspended for 4 games of World Cup qualifying. Argentina did not have a strong side and when Messi returned, they were in a win or miss World Cup scenario and Messi scored a hat trick of 3 goals carrying them again as he had done financially the year before. The Messi- Argentine love affair was blossoming, however that team was not strong. Although they made the World Cup and got out of the group stages, they lost in the quarter finals to eventual champion France. In 2019 at the Copa America , Messi and Argentina lost to a strong Brazilian squad in Brazil in the semis, but won the 3rd place game leaving Messi with exactly 0 national trophies for his national squad. Messi’s pain was acute and he lashed out at the referees and was suspended again.
Next week, we will continue with Messi and Argentina Part II.
Sincerely Yours,
C Thomas Printer
On this date in history
21 years ago to be exact, Ted Williams, the last baseball player to bat over .400 in a season died in Florida.
This week’s thought experiment
Please read the Declaration of Independence as we celebrate our nation’s holiday here in the U.S. Put yourself in the shoes of the men that signed that document, knowing that they had just signed a death sentence should they lose their rebellion to the most powerful nation on earth.
Also born on this date
P.T. Barnum, the founder of the Barnum and Bailey circus and showman extraordinaire.